Another post from G.! After I did my list of romance novel publishers, I asked him if he’d be willing to do a list of fantasy book publishers, since this is his genre. — Bryn
Since I first read Lord of the Rings decades ago, I’ve wanted to write an epic fantasy series. I’ve been working on it off and on for a few years now. (And by the way, if you’re thinking about writing a fantasy novel, definitely check out this post of 50 fantasy plot ideas and writing prompts.) My first book isn’t finished, but sometimes I wonder how I would go about finding a reputable publisher in today’s Amazon-dominated publishing world once it is.
What’s clear is that there are still good options available for new authors, but that the number of book publishing companies continues to shrink. If Penguin Random House succeeds in acquiring Simon & Schuster, the Big Five will be a Big Four, with Penguin Random House dwarfing the other three.
Your chances of success at finding a reputable publisher increase if you get a literary agent. However, there are smaller independent fantasy publishers accepting unsolicited manuscripts,
The alternative to finding a publisher is, of course, self-publishing, an option more and more successful authors are pursuing…but that is a subject for a different post.
After a week of researching fantasy publishers, here’s what I’ve found. Save the post (or pin it to Pinterest) if you think you might need it later.
BIG FIVE-OWNED PUBLISHING DIVISIONS & IMPRINTS
Penguin Random House
This huge publishing house is home to some 270 imprints. Among them is Ace Books, one of the premier epic fantasy publishers. Penguin doesn’t accept unsolicited submissions and encourages writers to seek representation by an agent.
Recent release: The New Improved Sorceress, Sara Hanover
Hachette
This company owns Orbit and Gollancz, two groups with histories of publishing great fantasy and science fiction writers. With imprints like these and others, Hachette numbers among the biggest publishers of fantasy. It doesn’t accept unsolicited manuscripts.
Recent Release: The Once and Future Witches, Alix E. Harrow
Harper Collins
The success that Harper Voyager, the well-known imprint of big-five publisher HarperCollins, has had publishing fantasy is truly spectacular. See their list of authors on their website if you’re curious. The company typically won’t read unagented submissions, but they may make open calls on occasion.
Recent Release: The Frozen Crown, Greta Kelly
Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster is another big-five publisher that doesn’t consider unsolicited submissions. Their best-known fantasy imprint is Saga Press.
Recent Release: Phoenix Extravagant, Yoon Ha Lee
MacMillan Publishers
MacMillan’s fantasy division is highly regarded Tor, which remains one of the biggest fantasy and science fiction publishers. Long known for being one of the fantasy publishers accepting unsolicited manuscripts, Tor’s policy has been suspended these many months due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to their website.
Recent Release: The Unspoken Name, A.K. Larkwood
INDIE PUBLISHERS
Some indie publishers are distributed by the Big 5. This means that the larger companies handle getting their books into stores, but aren’t involved in any of the editorial or creative decisions.
Angry Robot
They publish full-length fantasy novels for adults. A UK-based publisher, their guidelines say they sell most of their books in the U.S. For most of the year, they won’t accept unsolicited manuscripts, but each year they have an open submission period and advise you to check their social media for dates.
Recent Release: The Resurrectionist of Caligo, Wendy Trimboli and Alicia Zaloga
Apex Book Company
A Lexington, KY, indie publisher, Apex first emerged as a well-regarded speculative fiction magazine and then branched into books. Their focus is on dark fantasy, among other genres. Currently, they’re closed to submissions, which presumably will change sometime soon.
Recent Release: Mirrorstrike, Benjanun Sriduangkaew
Baen Books
Baen has a distribution relationship with Simon & Schuster. The company, started in 1983 by Jim Baen, and over the years has been at the forefront in the move to offer electronic sales, and even now makes electronic versions available a couple months before paper. This Wake Forest, N.C.-based company publishes books of 100,000–130,000 words. They do read unsolicited submissions; reporting time is 9 to 12 months.
Recent Release: Serpent Daughter, D.J. Butler
Blind Eye Books
Blind Eye publishes fantasy novels that feature LGBTQ protagonists. They accept unsoliticted submissions. Books are between 70,000 and 150,000 words. Expect to hear back in four months.
Recent Release: Master of Restless Shadows, Book One, Ginn Hale
DAW Books
Daw has published an impressive number of great fantasy writers over the decades. Like Baen it is no longer entirely independent: it now has a distribution relationship with Penguin Random House. Daw’s website says it maintains editorial control though and is still “a small private company,” yet it’s listed among Penguin Random House’s huge list of imprints. Typically, Daw is one of the fantasy publishers accepting unsolicited manuscripts. Right now, a note on their site says “There are no open calls for submissions presently.” (I’m guessing this is COVID-related.) Guidelines say they’re actively seeking diverse viewpoints and manuscripts should be 80,000 words or more.
Recent Release: The Forever Sea, Joshua Phillip Johnson
Edge Books
Edge is a science fiction and fantasy publisher. It’s a division of Hades Publishing, a Calgary, Canada-based company. Their novels range in length from about 75,000 to 100,000 words. They accept open submissions. Expect a decision in about three months.
Recent Release: A God in Chains, Matthew Hughes
Falstaff Books
Charlotte, NC-based Falstaff Books opens for unsolicited submissions on the day of this posting—for the month of February 2021. They refer to themselves as “the misfit toys of fiction” and publish Misfit Magazine, an eMagazine that features one author in each edition. Falstaff publishes books between 60,000 to 110,000 words. Expect a reply in two to six months.
Recent Release: Copper Road, Marion Deeds
Jolly Fish Press
Jolly Fish publishes middle-grade and YA fantasy. They’re open to unsolicited manuscripts. Interestingly, they also consider authors on a work-for-hire basis.
Recent Release: When the Earth Dragon Trembled, Judy Dodge Cummings
Luna Press
This Scottland-based indie publishes authors from around the globe. They take fantasy and dark fantasy, between 70,000 and 120,000 words. Their open submission period for novels is very limited, so be sure to check dates on their site if you want to submit.
Recent Release: Gears of Change, Anthony Laken
Mirror World Press
Based in Ontario, Canada, this independent accepts unsolicited fantasy submissions from November 1 through December 24. They publish novels of up to 125,000 words and reply in six to eight weeks. If you’re preparing to submit, I recommend taking a look at their website: It contains links to videos they’ve created to help writers prepare their submissions.
Recent Release: Mirror’s Despair, Justine Alley Dosett & Murandy Damodred
Montag Press Collective
This is a San Francisco Bay-area company that publishes urban fantasy and dark fantasy. They will only read solicited manuscripts presently. They say they don’t publish previously published books, but “self-published authors who are looking to revise and update their previous self-published titles” may get consideration.
Recent Release: Black Dawn, James, W. Bodden
World Weaver Press
Submissions are closed currently at World Weaver, but their next submission window will be announced on their website. They publish adult and new adult fantasy, no YA, of between 20,000 and 100,000 words. They encourage writers of diverse backgrounds to submit.
Recent Release: The Causality Loop, Wendy Nikel
I hope this list of fantasy book publishers was helpful! And I recommend Bryn’s book about how to write a novel. It’s practical and encouraging.
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– Gill Donovan
A dear friend was published in fantasy through a smaller publisher, Story Spring Publishing, but I can’t seem to find a link for it. I’m pretty sure it’s still in business.
Denise: I found a storyspringpublishing.com, but it seems to be a landing page for gatekeeper press, a group that provides services for self-publishing. Hard to say what the relationship is between those two entities. I’m interested in learning more about self-publishing, by the way, and plan to blog about it sometime soon.
Thanks for the fantasy publishers list, Gill!
You’re welcome!
There’s also Erewhon Books, a relatively new small press that put out its first four books in 2020! They only take novel-length speculative manuscripts, but they’ve already published authors like C.L. Polk, who is known for their tor.com novella series. (Although tor.com should probably also be on this list, since they do occasionally open up to unsolicited submissions.)
Thanks, S.M. Mack, for recommending Erewhon Books, one I’ve never come across before. As for Tor, they are part of the the section on big-five publisher MacMillan (Tor.com is their sci-fi fantasy division).
Hello! I am replying to your generous tweet to contact you via TH, which for some reason I wasnt able to do.
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Thank you!
What about Tor Books? Tons of fantasy books are with Tor.
Nevermind, I didn’t know Tor was under MacMillian!